Comcast/NBCU Doubles Commitment to Hire Vets

Reaches Goal of 1,000 Hires Two Years Early3/06/2013 5:49 AM Eastern

By: MCN Staff

Comcast said it has reached its three-year goal of hiring 1,000 veterans as part of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s “Hiring Our Heroes” initiative two years early and that it will double its pledge by hiring another 1,000 vets by 2015.

“Hiring Our Heroes” launched in March 2011 as a nationwide effort to help veterans and military spouses find meaningful employment. As a key partner in this effort, Comcast and NBCUniversal have hired 1,000 veterans in the last year to work in a variety of positions at all levels, including network engineering, technology, operations, theme parks and resorts, programming, customer service, marketing, human resources and other careers. Comcast and NBCUniversal’s pledge contributes to the Chamber’s Hiring 500,000 Heroes campaign, the largest private sector commitment of its kind with a goal of hiring half a million veterans and military spouses by the end of 2014. To date, businesses have pledged to hire more than 210,000 veterans and military spouses, and 93,000 hires have been confirmed.“Comcast and NBCUniversal are thrilled to have reached our original hiring commitment early,” said Comcast Cable Executive Vice President of Human Resources William Strahan in a statement. “We have had the privilege of hiring extremely talented men and women over the last year and we look forward to making our workforce even stronger with our next wave of veterans joining our team.”

Comcast and NBCUniversal have fostered a culture that supports veterans and reservists within its ranks. Veterans are invited to join employee resource groups where there is a community among veterans. The Comcast and NBCUniversal Veterans Network employee resource groups serve as a base of support for members, in several ways, including a mentoring program and events focused on growing the professional and personal development of veterans and their allies. Additionally, NBC News created the "Making a Difference on the Homefront" news series in an effort to shine a light on veterans, military families and the issues affecting them across the country. NBC Publishing also just released a free enhanced eBook and guide for veterans, Heroes Get Hired: How to Use Your Military Experience to Master the Interview (downloadable at http://www.heroesgethired.com/).“To move the needle on veteran unemployment, it will take companies increasing their levels of veteran hiring and Comcast and NBCUniversal have stepped up to do just that,” said Lieutenant Colonel Kevin Schmiegel (ret.), executive director of Hiring Our Heroes. “Comcast and NBCUniversal are among the biggest supporters of our program and through their dedication and leadership, we are seeing a difference in how businesses across America are recognizing the value in hiring a veteran.”